Acquiring NBA star Dwight Howard would keep Houston from the middle of the pack, but could it sink the franchise for years to come?

CORPUS CHRISTI - If the proposed trade between the Rockets and Magic is actually consummated before the next turn of the century, it'll probably mark the first time in NBA history that a player has been dragged to a new city, literally kicking and screaming as he's forced to fake a smile and hold up a new Rockets jersey and say things like, "I'm happy to be here…*long pause*… it's been a long process and I'm just glad that it's over."

Geez, hypothetical Dwight. Don't spoil us now!

Daryl Morey, Houston's beloved and maligned stathead general manager and equally as beloved "Dork Elvis", is doing everything he possibly can to end the Rockets' middling ways. For years, he has spun brilliant little deal after brilliant little deal, always trying to move his way up to the front of the line for Chris Bosh, Pau Gasol, Carmelo Anthony and other big names. He's always thinking three trades down the road. David Stern squashed his dream of re-building his frontcourt with Pau Gasol and Nene, and so now he's moved on to Dwight Howard.

Here's a golf ball in your throat at high speed if there ever was one. Morey is prepared to gut the entire roster for him. Yep. Everyone. Here's the proposed trade as of this morning, as per ESPN's Marc Stein and Chad Ford:

Take into account that the Rockets have already lost Goran Dragic to Phoenix by way of free agency, traded Kyle Lowry to Toronto, Chase Budinger to Minnesota, Marcus Camby to New York, Samuel Dalembert to Milwaukee, and could lose Courtney Lee by way of outright free agency or via sign and trade, but will lose him regardless.

That leaves… Luis Scola!

Actually, no. Scola will be a victim of the amnesty clause as soon as today, which is necessary for the Rockets to be able to absorb all the undesirable contracts Orlando wants to vomit onto Morey's lap.

Now, again, Morey isn't exactly breaking up the Oklahoma City Thunder here, but he's stripping the Rockets of everything, including guys who have never played a second in Houston, for what could be just one year of Dwight Howard sulking and playing at no more than 60% effort (which is still better than every center in the league minus 100% Bynum and 2,450,678% Omer Asik). If Dwight does leave, the supposed silver-lining is that the Rockets would have a ton of cap space to lure a star in to replace him, because Chris Paul has always wanted to play with Chris Duhon.

This is my issue with today's NBA. Dwight Howard should be intrigued by the possibility of playing in Houston – a franchise with a long, rich legacy of big men (Olajuwon, Moses Malone, Elvin Hayes, Yao Ming, Ralph Sampson), but instead, he wants to play in Brooklyn and Brooklyn ONLY. That's because He'd get to play with Deron Williams and Joe Johnson, and because there's no legacy to uphold in Brooklyn. He's not replacing Shaq in Orlando or LA, and he's not replacing Yao or Olajuwon in Houston – he's just the great big man in Brooklyn. Just take it easy, try to beat Miami every year, and win "…not 6, not 7…". It's why I was so refreshed to hear Kevin Durant openly voice his discomfort in playing with LeBron James on Team USA so soon after losing to him in the NBA Finals. It bothers him on a level that the rest of today's stars, minus Derrick Rose, simply can't relate to.

If you think Dwight is Morey's endgame, you're wrong. He's trying to adjust to today's NBA. He walked into a franchise with Yao and McGrady, he now wants Dwight and 2013 free agent to-be Chris Paul. Perhaps Paul will keep Dwight in Houston, so he doesn't go chasing rings in Brooklyn.

My question is this: Are we supposed to fall in love with these Rockets even if Morey ever gets Dwight and CP3? I mean, they're both phenomenal, Top 10, arguably Top 5, players. But they've got miles behind them in other cities, and not just miles – thousands of miles. To go with those miles is also a stream of broken hearts and hurt feelings. Just like when McGrady left Orlando on such bad terms enroute to Houston, Dwight, too, will be leaving as the enemy, not a departing hero who simply had to make a decision that was best for him. He got the head coach and GM fired, he toyed with the city's emotions like they were his little pawns in his own personal chess game. Are Rockets fans supposed to just blindly assume that this season won't be a repeat of that?

The Rockets teams I loved growing up were made up of guys who were homegrown (Hakeem, Horry, Cassell) and those bargain guys who become "like family" (Elie, Maxwell, Drexler, Thorpe, Kenny Smith, etc). Dwight isn't even family in the only NBA home he's known, and he's off to a glowing start in Houston by repeatedly protesting trades to the Bayou City.

If I was Morey, I'd pass and keep trudging on. Of course, that's easier said than done, but in an NBA that's full of star teams and not enough star competitors, I'd rather be the GM who bloodies himself in the name of restoring some sanity to a league that has lost its collective mind. Teams now make moves for free agents available three years IN THE FUTURE! Morey is positioning himself for a 2013 Chris Paul sweepstakes, but how do these things tend to go for teams? The Knicks spent years positioning themselves for LeBron and he went to Miami. The Lakers worked forever to get Chris Paul and wound up with Ramon Sessions (and now, Steve Nash –Canada's first NBA sell-out). It never ends up the way you planned, so why bother?

I suppose it's not all that bad, I mean if Dwight does leave after a single, uninspired season in Houston, at least we'll have the long-term contracts of Richardson, Duhon, Davis and/or Turkoglu to keep us warm and remind us, much like Brooks Hatlen in Shawshank, that "Dwight Was Here".